What Does Amelia Bedelia Have to Do with B2B Branding ...

Do you remember Amelia Bedelia books by Peggy Parish?? Not exactly on the best-selling list among B2B marketers but for children across the world, Amelia?s literal interpretation of common phrases was unexpectedly and delightfully silly!? ?Dress the Turkey? for Thanksgiving and you would have a dapper looking bird with suspenders and a bow tie at the dinner table.? So what would Miss Amelia do with ?Brand the Firm??? I?m envisioning that she would sear everything from the company signage to the people (?ouch?) and even down to the walls and kitchenette with a red hot poker.? Even though Amelia was known for her nutty antics, would her take on branding be truly that off the mark?

So what is a brand anyway?? While there are many definitions, I relate to this explanation by Scott Spanbauer, Emerging Strategies Marketing and Product Development and LeadCrafting CEO:

Marketing experts will generally answer along the lines of ?a brand is your company image?. But a brand is more than just your company image. It also includes your customers? experience and the expectation you set when doing business with your company. In short, it is promise.

Sure, branding includes logos, colors, advertising, Web sites and more.? But as Mr. Spanbauer indicates, what is often overlooked when thinking about what makes up a brand is the customer?s experience with a company?s products or services.? A clever B2B marketer can claim ?unsurpassed, unparalleled, cutting ?edge, world-class, and leading,? services and products, but if the firm doesn?t deliver, its brand won?t be any of these things.? It will be, unfortunately, what the customer remembers.

The buying cycle of B2B products and services tends to be longer and more thoughtful.? The impact of a B2B purchase can have a profound effect on a company.? Think of the impact of hiring a business coach whose advice helps take an organization to the next level.? Alternatively, invest in the wrong CRM system or IT service provider, and you may have some real-life blown fuses!? B2B purchases affect careers, operations, growth, compensation and more.

As the stakes of a B2B purchase get higher, the buyer?s memory also gets sharper.? Your brand will be seared in the customers? minds ? forever good or bad.??? So while the thought of Amelia Bedelia branding your B2B firm with a red hot poker may be a silly and slightly unpleasant visual, the way customers experience your products or services will leave a permanent stamp in their minds and that perception is indeed your brand.

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